BANGKOK, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- Thailand is now free of the avian influenza or the bird flu, but precaution measures have been implemented to prevent its outbreak, Preecha Somboonprasert, director-general of the Livestock Development Department said Monday.

    Recently, Thailand's northern province of Nan alerted of the bird flu or the H5N1 virus outbreak after several poultries died.

    Nan's livestock department collected some examples of the dead poultries and sent them to a nearby province of Lam-pang, where a regional office of the National Institute of Animal Health, is located, to examine.

    However, Preecha said that the poultries in Wieng-sa district of Nan did not die due to the H5N1 virus contraction, but they died from the season change, Thai News Agency reported.

    Thailand's North immediately experiences the winter and the poultries could not adjust themselves to the season change resulting in the death, Preecha said.

    The Livestock Development Department has not yet discovered theH5N1 virus outbreak in Thailand, but during the winter it is risky of the bird flu outbreak, he said.

    Hence, some precaution steps have been implemented, the director-general of the Livestock Development Department said.

    During Nov. 2-13, the Department ordered cleaning risky areas across the country with potentially having had diseases latency during the winter time, Preecha said.

    Involved authorities nationwide have been asked to closely monitor the situation, including migrant birds, the director-general said.

    If a poultry is sick or dead abnormally in anywhere, they must immediately contain any potential disease outbreak, he said.